Batgirl - Shadow of the Bat
by Nitewing1987
Summary: Barbara Gordon Batgirl origin story that involves run-ins with Two-Face, HARDAC, Catwoman and Killer Moth.
1. The Commissioner's Daughter

**The Commissioner's Daughter**

There was a knock on the door.

"Hey Barbara can you get the door for me?" my dad called out.

I put my books down, opened the door and saw Gil Mason, Harvey Bullock, and Renee Montoya. Gil was a district attorney that often worked closely with my father, Police Commissioner Gordon. Harvey and Renee were his subordinates that were part of his task force.

"Hey Dad, it's for you," I called.

"We are sorry about this Barbara," Gil said.

"Sorry about what?" I asked. I didn't get an answer.

"How are we coming on the Killer Moth case?" my dad asked.

Everyone had a look on their face like something was seriously wrong.

"What's going on?" my dad asked.

Finally Gil spoke up and said, "Jim Gordon you are under arrest."

"For what? You're kidding right?" my dad responded.

"I wish we were Commissioner" Gil responded. "We have evidence that you have received bribe money from Rupert Thorne. We don't believe it's true but we have to bring you in until we get this sorted out."

"That's crazy!" I interjected. "Dad would never take a bribe!"

"We know Barbara, but right now there is warrant for his arrest and we have to do this."

Renee and Gil tried to comfort me and assured me that things would work out but I pushed them both away. Gotham had a long history of crooked police and a jury would never give my dad a fair chance. He spent his whole life cleaning up the Gotham police force and now they were turning their back on him. My blood was boiling. I didn't know what I was going to do at the time, but I knew I was going to do something.

Many police officers and other citizens who supported my dad organized a rally the next day. People knew that he often worked with Batman to solve his cases which caused very polarizing feelings toward him. I figured if Batman himself showed up, the rally could gain more support and convince the general public of his innocence.

I got on the roof of the police station and turned on the Bat symbol. I had never spoken to him so I was a bit nervous. It felt like meeting a celebrity. A few minutes passed and then he dropped in from his plane and walked up to me. He looked scary but I wasn't scared because I truly believed he was a hero like my dad regarded him as.

"Did you know that my dad has been wrongfully accused of accepting bribes? Someone is framing him?"

"I know."

"If you show up to the rally tomorrow, I really think the city will know he is innocent. Your presence could mean so much, can you go?"

"That's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. That's what you brought me out here for? I'll work on clearing his name but going to the rally is a waste of time. Don't signal me again unless it's important or you have something to tell me that I don't know. At least something that could help me clear him."

"Fine," I said as Batman grappled to his plane and left. I was disappointed on how blunt and how much of a jerk he was. He was probably right but it didn't sit well with me how unsympathetic he was towards me.

On my way back home I made up mind on something that would change my life forever. "Batman will be there tonight one way or another," I said to myself.

 **The Rally**

I went to the store the next morning and bought the fabric I needed to create my own bat-suit. This was going to be beyond your typical Halloween outfit. I had seen the Batman in person now and thought I could replicate his suit on an appearance level pretty well. I spent the day putting it together and donned it for the rally. My plan was to purposely be spotted at the rally on a rooftop. From that height the audience would recognize it as Batman but wouldn't be able to tell that I was a fake. Once the crowd saw that Batman himself showed up for the rally I was sure everyone would agree that my dad was framed.

I got to the spot long before the rally started and made my way up to the roof. I was on top of the building behind the podium and made my appearance soon after the rally got started. The crowd got very lively as I walked around on the roof showing off my outfit to them. After I felt I made my point, I disappeared out of sight and quickly climbed down using a rope. I was about to ditch my clothes, put it in a bag, and attend the rest of the rally as Barbara Gordon. However, before I could start there was a loud car driving by causing tons of panic in the crowd. I ran around the building to witness the rally turning into a drive-by shooting. One of the cars sped away but the other one received heavy gun fire by the cops in attendance and other security. Two criminals hopped out and started running away towards the location I was in. They didn't appear to be armed anymore so I figured I might be able to stop them. They hadn't seen me and I had the element of surprise to my advantage. My dad had put me in self-defense classes since I was very young so I felt confident that I could handle myself.

I charged in tripping the first thug and then engaging the second. I was able to out maneuver him but couldn't land a decisive blow to take him down. The first thug got up and attacked me. I thought I was about to get double teamed but the second thug took off running. Soon the police were approaching and my first instinct was to stop and let them take it from there. Then I realized that I was still in my batsuit and scared people would find out the real Batman wasn't there. I ran off in the same direction as the second thug but didn't really give chase. I took my mask and cape off so I wouldn't draw as much attention and made my way home.

After a few hours at home by myself, I finally calmed down and watched the news about the shooting at the rally. Interestingly no one was shot. The shooting must have been more to send a message and scare people. I started thinking of the potential reasons for it. Was this just a group of people that didn't support my dad? Was this attack from the same people that framed him? My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

As I answered I saw Gil Mason. He immediately hugged me and tried to comfort me. "I just wanted to check on you and make sure that you were safe Barbara. Jim told me to look out for you and considering what just happened at the rally we shouldn't take any chances," he said.

"Thanks Gi…. Gil."

My heart skipped as I was responding to him. I recognized the person behind him as the same one I fought at the rally that had ran away. I was terrified that he had recognized me but it didn't appear to be the case. The mask I had on must have hid my face well enough. He certainly would have been able to tell I was a girl and my general build but I doubt our encounter was long enough for him to know it was me. I tried to act as natural as possible and friendly to my guests. When we were alone Gil started getting more touchy feely with me and I was getting uncomfortable. I wanted to snap at him but didn't want to do anything to suggest that I knew he might have been involved with framing my dad. At the same time, he was getting carried away and I had to get him to stop. In a respectful way I told him, "Now is not the time Gil." I was relieved that he took "no" for an answer and backed off for the rest of the night.

I couldn't fall asleep. The idea that Gil had been in on my dad getting framed made me feel like there was nobody I could trust. My dad trusted him and Gil had set him up. I thought I heard something near my window but disregarded it as me possibly being paranoid. Then I heard a second noise, a little bit louder than the first. It looked like a Bat sticker on my window with a note attached. The note read "BE QUIET". Afterwards a figure appeared at my window and let himself inside.

"Are you in danger?" Robin asked.

"No, well I don't think so. What makes you think I am?" I asked.

"Well, if I were you I wouldn't trust Gil Mason. I came here to observe him," Robin said.

"Interesting. Why do you think Gil would put me in danger?"

"I was looking at all the different cameras after the drive-by at the rally. Gil was the first person to duck and I found that very suspicious. He was facing the cars and could have spot the guns first but most people don't react that fast. Also, he ducked in a calm and under control manner instead of showing surprise and panic like a normal person would. I don't have all the dots connected but I am sure that he knew shots were going to be fired at the rally."

"So why don't you and Batman bring him in?"

"I'm not convinced Gil is the big fish here. I think there is more going on or a different mastermind behind it. I want to get more figured out before I act on it."

"You keep saying 'I'… no offense but what is Batman's take on it?"

"Well, that's the other problem. I haven't been able to get in contact with him all day. He was supposed to be undercover but somehow he must have been at the rally. I'm totally confused and can't get a hold of him."

"Well, I have something I should tell you… That wasn't Batman at the rally it was me"

"What?"

"I dressed up like Batman hoping it would convince the people in Gotham my dad was innocent. I ended up fighting two of the criminals while still in the bat-costume and one of those guys was in my house earlier tonight. He came with Gil. So I already figured Gil was crooked."

"I see. Well that solves the mystery on how Batman was at the rally, but it doesn't solve the mystery of what happened to the real one."

"Are you worried?"

"Well, I'm always a little bit worried I guess."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Just find out anything you can about Gil and use this to contact me."

Robin handed me a mini radio and showed me how to use it. He also gave me a tracker he wanted me to plant on Gil the next time I saw him.

"Do you usually share your stuff like this?"

"No. I trust you though and think you may be able to help me."

That was all the encouragement I needed.

Robin's instructions were simple. Plant a tracker on Gil that he could follow. I intended to do that but decided that I wanted to track Gil myself too. I had learned a lot over the years about the computer technology the police used and developed a passion for computer programming and engineering. I was currently a freshman at Gotham University and my formal studies in computer programming had just started but I already had plenty experience tampering with gadgets and making my own. I spent the whole next day putting together my handheld device that would allow me to follow the same tracker Robin gave me. While working on it, I had the news on and it turned out I made quite a splash. Reporter Veronica Vreeland and her crew had spotted me on camera and there was a bunch of buzz in the city on which the mysterious "Batgirl" was that caught one of the crooks.

When Gil swung by to check on me I hugged him to greet him and slipped the tracker in his pocket. I did my best to act normal and kept questioning him on what he is doing to free my dad. Gil gave me a bunch of excuses for the next 30 minutes until he finally left. Once he was out of sight, I ran up to my room and watched him head west on my handheld tracking device. It didn't provide the best distance measurement but would send me in the right direction. Along with my tracker, I equipped a knife, lockpick, binoculars, and rope within my homemade Batgirl outfit. While driving towards it, I spotted Gil's car and parked a few blocks away before heading towards the empty bar known as Deuces.

I started sneaking towards the building when suddenly I was grabbed from behind. I threw a few elbows but couldn't connect with my attacker and suddenly was launched in the air. Once on the roof, I was able to turn and see that it was Robin and I stopped trying to fight. He looked ticked off.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm following Gil just like you."

"I don't have time for this. Stay put before you get yourself caught or killed."

"I may not have a degree in crime fighting but I know how to handle myself."

"Walking around in the open wearing a Batman outfit is putting a huge target on your back."

"I was not just out in the open."

"Open enough for me to spot you."

We spotted Gil through a window on the phone with some other people in the room, and Robin shot a listening device on the wall right beside it. I asked him what Gil was saying but he kept brushing me off and walking away as he was listening. I decided to do my own digging and used my binoculars to see that Gil wrote down, "S. Gotham Subway – Old River Entr."

"Hey Robin, what did you find out?"

"I know where he is going Barbara. I'll get to the bottom of this but you need to just go home. I'll get to the spot before this meeting goes down and see who he is meeting up with."

"Fine," I lied. "Can you at least get me down?" I asked.

"Okay, hold on." He dropped me off near my car and then took off towards south Gotham. Once I got out the car at the location he appeared out of nowhere.

"Why are you doing this? It takes more than the costume and attitude to do this work."

"Look I've got a reason for being here so…."

"I know you do but if you don't stay out of my way it will put both of us in danger. I found a good stake out spot; we can talk about it from over there."

We continued to disagree but eventually Robin gave up on convincing me to leave. Finally Gil and his squad showed up as well as a separate group that appeared to be a group of mobsters as well. We snuck closer to get a better look. We both looked through our binoculars and confirmed that Robin was right. Gil wasn't the mastermind behind this, he was answering to a familiar nemesis, Two-Face.

It was hard to believe that less than a year ago the mobster we now call Two-Face was district attorney Harvey Dent. He had been the face of justice to our city and the few times I had met him in person he was always a gentleman and class act. Former mafia boss Rupert Thorne had discovered that he suffered from a split personality disorder and blackmailed him until Harvey snapped. During the conflict half of his face was permanently damaged and his inner demons surfaced into his physical appearance. Since that time he has taken such a violent and aggressive crusade against the criminal scum in Gotham he has become one himself. It's a sore spot for anyone that knew him before. I never thought of Two-Face the same way as the other popular villains in Gotham. It never seemed right to group him in with them because he hated each of them so much. Many would even argue that he was fighting the criminal underworld even more than the police and Batman.

"It all makes sense now," Robin said to interrupt my thoughts.

He continued, "Two-Face's end game is to take control of the Gotham police to rid the city of crime in his more 'wild west' vision. Gil became his inside guy and has been able to solve cases others can't because he has been getting intel on criminals from Two-Face. Gil is at the top of his world but Two-Face doubles everything. He has to have a cop in mind he wants to push to commissioner status. However, in order to do that he has damage Gordon's reputation or take him clear out the picture."

"I can't wait to get my hands on him," I replied.

"Oh crap!"

"What is it?"

"They got Batman in there tied up. I'm not sure if they know it's him though."

"How could they not be sure?"

"He is in civilian clothes, I got to get closer and figure out what's goin' on."

Robin tried to leave me behind but I followed him towards the old subway entrance. We got close enough for me to barely hear parts of the conversation.

"We found this guy snoopin' around our territory and I don't like it. Gil, does this guy look familiar to you?" Two-Face asked him.

"No, you brought me down here just for that? Just kill the guy and dump him in the river, he's a nobody," Gil said.

"I make the calls, not you, and don't you forget that," Two-Face said to Gil with some disdain. I tried to climb up to where Robin was but lost my footing causing my hands and feet to make a loud enough sound for Two-Face and his goons to hear. I really screwed up.

"Who's there!" Two-Face yelled.

Then I heard another voice I hadn't heard yet yell, "Robin, now!"

A smoke dust filled the room and the whole area became absolute chaos. I was hearing tons of grunts of people in pain and saw a guy that looked like a henchmen burst out of the smoke with hands tied behind his back. He turned to look at me and I prepared to defend myself.

"Get out now!" he yelled at me as he continued to run outside the abandoned subway station.

I started running out as well and soon Robin was right behind us. Two-Face and a few of his henchmen were on our trail.

Robin yelled out to us, "Batman, Batgirl, take my motorcycle, I can find my own way out of this."

Batman said, "No! You two take it!"

Robin replied, "I have my gadgets you don't! Now get her to safety! Wait, where are you going?!"

It was too late. I had stopped listening. I saw Gil Mason running towards a little speed boat and there was no way I was going to let him get away after what he put me and my dad through.

By the time he took the ropes off and got the boat started I was able to dive into it. He started driving away and then turned to face me. Fighting on the speedboat was incredibly tough for both us. It was hard to keep any real balance due to all the rocking and eventually he fell on top of me and started trying to choke me. In the struggle, my mask came off and he suddenly paused in shock.

"I didn't know it was you Barbara," he said with a dropped jaw.

"Would it have mattered Gil?!" I yelled at him angrily.

His hesitation led to his downfall as I was able to free himself and headbutt him twice in the face before being able to free up my arm and land a few punches. The boat was still moving at a decently fast pace and heading toward what might have been an oil rig. I jumped off and watched the speed boat collide and Gil crash into it out the corner of my eye. Afterwards I swam towards some of the wreckage hoping to find parts on the boat I could use as a raft. Fortunately the Batwing soon showed up flying over my head and Robin dived down to grab me out the water. He had a cord attached to his body that hoisted us both up and into the Batwing. Afterwards, he found Gil and we took him directly to the hospital. Batman now had on his mask although he was still in civilian clothes.

"We got to get you to a doctor too Batman," Robin said.

It appeared during the struggle Batman had been shot twice but neither was fatal. For the past few years all I heard was stories about how invulnerable he was but right then I realized he was just as human as anybody else. He is extremely tough, but still human.

After we dropped Batman off by a Dr. Leslie Thompkins, Robin and I had a moment to talk.

"I'm sorry I blew your cover at the station. That was stupid, I should've stayed behind."

"It's okay, I'm over it. I had to learn the same lessons when I first started."

"So how did you become Batman's sidekick?"

"That's not something I'm at liberty to talk about. Plus you're a detective just like your dad, if I give you clue, you may actually figure it out."

"Fine."

"But anyway, I know we got off on the wrong foot but I wanted you to know, that you do show potential for crime fighting. We don't like the idea of other people taking the same risks that we do and don't get me wrong, I don't what you to do something like this ever again. But if you do, don't go alone. Please contact us and get us involved from the start."

Robin handed me a device that could signal him whenever I needed to.

"Thanks," I said.

Although I felt like I got his point, Robin continued to explain, "We protect the city so people like you don't have to. If someone gets killed because they were inspired to fight crime because of Batman, he may feel enough guilt to give it all up. Just keep that in mind."

"Okay, I got it. Let's say I do use the Batgirl persona and I coordinate with you guys. Then will you make me part of your team?

"I don't know. The point is, after you cross a certain line you have to be all the way in. This means being on call all the time to fight crime. I don't think you want that. Even if you do want it, trust me, you don't want it yet."

"I think you are right about that actually. But you could at least tell me your secret identity?"

"No. If you know that, you need to be all the way in. I do like the idea of growing the family a little bit and you playing the role as an ally. But an ally as Barbara Gordon instead of Batgirl though. I know he will reject the idea but if he can work with your dad for the big cases, maybe you can work with me on some of the smaller or overlooked ones. I think eventually he will warm up to it and you can become an honorary member of the team."

Although Gil survived, he had a serious concussion in the crash and had a hazy memory of the whole day. This kept my secret safe as Batgirl. It wasn't long before Robin contacted me about a mission he needed assistance with.


	2. Neophyte

**Neophyte**

"Babs, we need you in the Batcave right now, it turns out that the intel we found had a virus on it and we can't get rid of it," Robin told me around 2:00 AM. It was funny that Robin felt comfortable enough to call me 'Babs' when I still didn't even know his real name. I left a note for my dad that I had to go to campus early today. He wouldn't wake up until much later so he wouldn't know I left in the middle of the night like this. That type of behavior would definitely lead to a line of heavy questioning from my detective father. Robin picked me up in the Batwing and blindfolded me so I couldn't know the location of the Batcave.

"Sorry about this, we trust you but it's just procedure."

"It's fine, I get it. The more people that know your identity the more complex it makes your lives."

"Anyway, I really appreciate you coming here. So how is it at Gotham University?"

"It's been cool, I've made plenty of new friends and stuff."

"So, you got a boyfriend?"

"No. I think most dudes are scared of my dad. You know, he is always trying to set me up with one of the young cops."

"Haha, oh man. I think I'm going to attend GU next year."

"Are you still in high school?"

"Yes, why did you say it in that tone?"

"No offense, I just couldn't imagine someone practically my age doing what you do. It's amazing."

"Well thanks."

When he took the blindfold off I was in the cave for the first time and was in awe of the sheer size of it. I saw numerous gadgets, the batmobile, versions of the batsuit and robin outfits. It was overwhelming to think that I was finally able to see everything for myself. Batman cut straight to the point explaining what he knew about this HARDAC virus and what he tried to expunge it. Soon after I went to work, Batman headed out in the Batmobile leaving Robin and I together again.

"Can I get you something?" Robin asked.

"Actually coffee will be great, thanks," I replied. He came back and started to elaborate a little bit more on what had happened.

"Batman was hoping to uncover the location of an arms deal that the Penguin was involved in. However, the henchman we interrogated swore to us that all the information he had was on a disc. The Penguin wanted to avoid the phones or using radio since Batman would tap or hack into those so they try to communicate more through physical means. We believed him and took the disc he supplied but once we opened it up all hell broke loose."

"Yeah, this isn't your run of the mill virus. This came from an experienced true Black Hat. I can restore all the function of the computer but I'm afraid that a lot of your files have been deleted permanently."

"That's fine; in all honesty Batman is super thorough and backs up all the really important information so I doubt we really lost much."

"Well that's good to know. It's always important to make backups but most people don't. Well now I'm just getting all this software re-installed but my job is primarily done."

"You should stick around for a bit longer, we don't get many visitors you know."

Our conversation was interrupted by a call from Batman that included Alfred on the line as well.

"Alfred, Robin"

"Go ahead Batman," Robin responded.

"I tracked down the guy that gave me the drive, name's Jeff Bennett. He had a small house in Robinson Park. He was resistant but I forced him to give me a name on who put together the drive. He said the Penguin is working with a new computer whiz that goes by the name Hardac. The next lead I followed, I must have tripped an alarm because after I entered the house it triggered a bomb. Luckily I detected it in time and was able to escape. However, I'm afraid any evidence of tracking Hardac further has hit a dead end with this house going up in flames," Batman stated.

"Well that's unfortunate but it's good to know that you are alright. I have faith you will find a way to find him in the future," Alfred chimed in.

Afterwards Robin and I provided an update on the Batcave computer system and we wrapped up the conversation with the others.

I noticed Robin started to relax more and also started looking at me a little different.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked.

"Like what?" Robin asked me as he started rubbing my shoulder.

I was stunned and at a loss for words as Robin started getting closer to me. He eventually pulled me up from the chair and wrapped his arms around me.

"Are you sure about…." I started to ask but he went ahead and kissed me before I could finish. We made out for a little bit before I took a step back and told him that I needed to install the rest of the software. On one hand I was confused and shocked about this unexpected development. On the other I was flattered and excited.

"You still won't give me a name will you?" I asked.

"You know my name. It's Robin."

"Your real name."

"It is my real name, it's just not my government name."

"Can you at least take your little eye mask off for me so I can see your whole face?"

"No."

"Fine. I'll be able to recognize you anyway if I saw you without it"

After a while we got back to business discussing the criminal activity.

Robin explained, "Batman has been trying hard to bring down Penguin lately and wants me to follow some leads on Poison Ivy who has disappeared since last year."

"So what about this Black Hat known as HARDAC that just gave you guys a virus?"

"We'll get to that but I don't know if we can yet, it's easier to finish a case before you switch gears if you can."

When he dropped me off he gave me one more kiss goodbye. I didn't know it at the time but I was already a part of the Batfamily at that point.

A few days later I called Robin to get an update on the progress on the HARDAC case.

"So what's the news on HARDAC? Have you guys found any leads?" Iasked.

"Naw. We've been so tied up with Scarecrow, Two Face, and the Penguin we just haven't made time to look into it like we want to and I don't see us doing it any time soon," Robin responded.

"Hmmmph… I see. Well tell Bats this guy is mine. I'll catch him."

"Now hold up, we don't know how dangerous he is so leave the caped crusader business to us."

"This is more up my alley and you guys got tons of stuff on your plate. Let me help."

"Okay, but you better keep us in the loop and don't go physically looking for him or chasing him yourself. None of this Batgirl stuff."

"You're no fun."

"I'm serious; I don't want you gettin' hurt."

"Don't worry I'll be careful," I said as he started to lead me into the Batwing and blindfold me again. "I'm not going to pick any fights, I'll just do some legal digging and let you know if I can get any intel on him."

"Arright, let me know what you find, but keep the Batgirl costume in the closet."

"Okay."

"I mean it."

"Okay, I got it."

Afterwards I thought about going to the cops to help about this HARDAC situation as a civilian but then it hit me how many problems came with it. First off, Batman was the victim, not me, and he could never report a crime. I could never do anything to imply I know Batman or know who he is because the cops would push to get me to snitch and say I'm withholding information on criminal activity. I could lie and say that HARDAC hacked into my computer but then I would have to create a whole false story and eventually be caught in web of lies. Although I just agreed otherwise I had to take it back. This simply wasn't the right job for Barbara; I was better off approaching it as Batgirl. The costume was coming out despite Robin's warnings.

The next decision came down to which cop I wanted to consult with. Approaching my own dad would be too awkward and he is more likely to figure out it's me. Harvey Bullock absolutely hates Batman and would not be open to helping me out. I thought of a few others I happen to know and settled in on Renee Montoya. Renee was a junior detective not much older than me but my dad held her in high regard. Also, I figured a fellow woman may be more trusting of me than some of the trigger happy goons in Gotham's police department.

I was able to figure out where she lived but didn't feel comfortable trying to break into her apartment and have a conversation with her like Batman would. I needed a more open area but also an area where she was alone. I underestimated how difficult finding this time and place was in regards to Renee. I tried to learn about her through some casual conversation with officers in my dad's unit but it seemed she kept her personal life a bit secretive. I thought I could put a tracker on her car but she always used public transportation when off duty and was with a partner when she was on duty. All, I had to go off of was where she lived. One night while staking her out, I saw her leave the apartment in the Otisburg district and get into a taxi. I followed her thinking I was finally going to get somewhere and had my Batgirl outfit in the backseat just in case but she ended up getting dropped off at the subway station. I had no way to predict where she went after that and there was nowhere to park and follow her quickly enough. I got frustrated for a moment as I started heading back home but my mood switched to more optimistic when I realized I may have another way to find out where she went.

At the time I was a neophyte, or in layman terms, a novice hacker but pulling up some city cameras was well within my range. I knew my dad's passwords to get clearance into the police system and could download video from different cameras in the city and delete the trace of it in case there were any inquiries about what my dad was looking for. Once I got home I went to work on it immediately and was able to spot Renee from an hour earlier that night. She got off in North Burnley which wasn't as bad as the East End or Old Gotham but still a more shady area in Gotham. I checked a few more city cameras and was able to spot her a few more times and narrowed down her location to a handful of bars in the area. Now all I had to do was bar hop until I found her. If she spotted and recognized me first I could just act like it was a coincidence but I was hoping to avoid that. I wanted to find her first and lay low until she left. Then pull out my batgirl mask and talk to her.

I drove over to North Burnley assuming she hadn't left yet and had no luck in the first few bars I tried. To my surprise I found her towards the end of my search in a lesbian bar. The bar wasn't too full so I left before she could see me in there and decided to hang in the bar next door for a while. Eventually I spotted Renee leaving and walking back towards the subway station. Once she was by herself I put the Batgirl mask on and called out to her. I tried to disguise my voice but at the same time didn't want to sound threatening.

I felt bad because she was so shocked when I said her name she practically jumped. Even in her tipsy state she spotted the mask and drew her gun on me in an instant. That muscle memory was something else.

"Freeze. Who are you? What do you want?"

"Easy. I'm Ba…. Batgirl," I said giggling a little after because it was a weird name to adopt. "I just wanted to see if you could help me with a case."

"Huh, so there is a Batgirl now…the rumors were true. Spill it, what do you want?" she said with her gun still pointed at me.

"Someone hacked into Batman's computer but we have hit a dead end on tracking down the culprit. Batman won't admit it and can't come to the police but he needs help with this one. This type of crime isn't something he has much experience with."

"Interesting… and you want me to help you find this guy, off the books?"

"I don't want to get you or any cop too involved since I realize it's not an official police case. But is there someone in the force that catches hackers? I just want to be pointed in the right direction and I'll find a way from there."

I described the virus I had encountered in the Batcave and what I had to do to clean the system.

"Well, Batgirl. We got some decent ones in our department, but this HARDAC seems to be a very advanced one. You should go to Charles Szasz, a private investigator in Hub City. He specializes in this type of thing and we have called him in on occasion for cases like this. But I warn you, he is an odd man. Don't get me wrong he is a genius, but very odd."

"Thank you so much!" I said in a cheery tone that couldn't be any more opposite to the reputation Batman had developed.

"Before you leave Batgirl, a word of advice; you are obviously doing this independent of Batman. And I'm not going to judge you negatively for deciding to follow in his footsteps or be a vigilante. But it appears you don't have the training or equipment he has. Any cop that has pulled a gun on Batman has had it knocked out of his hand with a batarang before he or she could even lift it. If you are going to be a part of his team, be a part of his team. But, if you are just a fangirl or side chick to him, there is a good chance you'll get killed."

"Thanks for your concern. The Two Face thing got out of hand but I'm playing it safe from this point on."

"Sure."

I had to think of an excuse to go to Hub City by myself so I ended up lying to my dad that I was going to Metropolis with friends for a weekend. There was no way he was going to buy that I would travel all the way to Hub City, Missouri for fun.

Charles was a private investigator that I approached as Batgirl as well. Once again I decided that contacting him as Barbara would only complicate things further since I didn't want my real name associated with the Batman. Also, I wanted to keep things as honest and direct as possible for him to get started without sifting through my lies. He was the peculiar type and had a very classic look with his fedora and tie.

After hearing my story he had quite a long response.

"I see. Quite a case you have here Miss….. Batgirl. Very compelling. However, I need to make a living and going by your cheap but not too cheap outfit with limited off the shelf gadgets I would say you are from a middle class family but do not have a means to provide much for yourself. You are intelligent so your lack of income leads me to presume that you are most likely still in college and haven't started an actual career yet; possibly a boyfriend that provides for you but not likely. Your mannerism is very professional and mature. Not as structured and formal as a military brat yet a strong sense of duty and respect for the law. Tell me if I'm wrong, you are the daughter of a police officer or some type of government official."

It seemed he had me all figured out but I didn't want to give him any confirmation.

"Interesting speculation… however, I am not here to talk about my personal life and I would appreciate it if you used that mind of yours to think more about the case I have presented to you," I responded.

He ignored my request and continued on.

"My hunch is the Bat-family as you call it, isn't the type to ask for help in this manner and if Batman did, he would do it himself. Your appearance here indicates that you are not completely tied to them yet you are still connected on some level. Not immediate family but possibly a 'cousin' status. Fascinating. Unfortunately, I don't work for free and I know you don't have the means to pay me for a case like this. So please convince Batman to come himself or assure me that by some means I am not aware of, you do have the money for this. If you do, then I insist you tell me what you do for a living as I refuse to accept illegal money and still doubt you have a true career. Besides that, I'm working on a tough case and will not be available to take on another in the near future. If I am right about you, please excuse yourself as my time is valuable."

"Well, I was expecting a white hat hacker but you appear to be quite the all around observant detective. Here is my counter proposal, if I can help you solve your case, for free mind you, you will help me solve mine. Whaddaya say?"

"I'm not sure how much you can help me,"

"I'll admit your detective skills are far superior to my own, but how many times have you been in a situation where you needed to be at two places at once? How many times have you needed to do two tasks at once or play two roles at once? Needed someone to go undercover? Needed someone to be an outside observer if you want to go undercover? You'll finish this case at least twice as fast with me as you would without me."

For the first time he was at a loss for words as he thought about what I was saying.

"You make some excellent points Batgirl. However, I still do not believe you have the skills to assist me and are simply too green for me to trust you. One day, you may be an asset for me though. I've created a master guide for hacking. I want you to learn everything you can from these files. Once you're done, call me back and we can discuss how you are going to track down the person behind this mystery HARDAC virus."

"Thank you so much! I'll be right on it, you will hear from me soon."

"Soon you say? There is terabytes of data it will take you at least 4 months to go through it."

"I'll do it in one."

"Well we will see about that. But I do ask in return should I ever need you for anything, I expect you to come through for me."

"Sure, you got it."

As soon as I got back to Gotham I left a note for Renee indicating I made contact with Charles and still pursuing HARDAC. I went to work going through Charles guide and learning all I could about the world of hacking and computer security. What I was learning was well beyond anything I was studying in my computer science classes. The internet was still young and unexplored at that time and its growing popularity also led to a boom in the hacker community. All the possibilities for hackers now seemed endless and only a handful of people could stay on top of the constantly progressing technology. Three weeks had gone by and although I had made great progress I was nowhere near where I wanted to be. In the news, it came up that the "Killer Moth" had struck again. This was his third victim. Each one suffocated to death by being wrapped up in an unescapable cocoon. This guy was horrendous even for Gotham standards but the police were unable to make any connection or pattern to the victims and were unable to trace who was producing this chemical. I took a break from my HARDAC case to brainstorm on how to catch the Killer Moth. I had some ideas but not the finances or resources to put it altogether.

It took me another month before I felt comfortable calling Charles. He gave me a quick quiz and was surprised to find out I really was ready to find HARDAC. After coaching me through it, I was able to pinpoint his location. I informed Batman and Robin. Before they invaded the house out in suburbia, they brought me along to do some reconnaissance.


	3. Home Invasion

**HOME INVASION**

After doing some scouting on Karl Rossum's home we returned to the Batcave and planned our invasion.

"Barbara, you will command this operation from the Batcave," Batman said.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"You know the most about this guy and have identified his security measures and alarm. Both Robin and I will need to be in the field to pull this off and we need you to talk us through anything that comes up we aren't expecting," Batman explained.

"He's right Barbara" Robin added.

I sighed.

"Well I hope I don't screw this up," I said.

"You got this," Robin assured me.

Batman went over how to pull up the different cameras we placed around the property and communicate with him and Robin throughout the operation.

"Rossum has a wall surrounding the property with a tall gate out in front for the entrance. Remember if the wall feels a significant weight or impact it will send out an alarm so Robin do not touch it unless we have an emergency evacuation. Are you ready for the drop?"

"Yeah, Batgirl," Robin responded.

"Okay, on my count. 1, 2, 3," I said.

Robin dropped from the Batwing and hang-glided over the east side of the property onto the roof of the mansion.

"Okay Robin, next you have to disrupt the cameras. There is one on the yard on each side of the building. Start with the one behind the building and remember that you only have 1 minute per camera to insert the chip."

"No sweat, Batgirl."

After the one minute time period the cameras would sense that there was a significant disruption and send a warning to the house. Therefore Robin had that brief window of time to open it up, insert the chip and put it back together. I had written a program that repeated the same visual recording from the day before so Robin wouldn't be spotted in the yard. The real difficult part to this was that they were 360° cameras so Robin, couldn't just sneak behind it and tamper with it. We made a device we simply called the 'disruptor' that we could fire on the camera that would interrupt the electrical flow and cause it to show static. However, if Robin didn't remove the disruptor within a minute, the camera would sense that something was permanently wrong and sound the alarm. Therefore after Robin inserted the chip in the cameras he had to take the disruptor off so the camera could function properly again. Afterwards, Robin grappled back onto the rooftop and started the process over for the other three sides of the property, starting with shooting the disruptor from the roof and swooping down to the yard to tamper with the cameras.

"Arright Batgirl, I'm finished and moving to a location in the attic," Robin said.

"Great, arright Batman, you are up next."

"I'm on it," he responded.

Batman was parked about a block away in the Batmobile. He stepped out and pulled out the new drone batarang I developed with the help of his personal engineer. Batman didn't tell me much, but I knew he relied on this guy to develop gadgets in his arsenal as well as the Batmobile and Batwing. This engineer was able to take my plans for a remote controlled batarang with a camera on it that we could view in real-time and created a few. The distance it could operate from was still limited at the time so Batman took on the task of steering it. I followed it on my monitor as it left Batman's hand and crashed through the window of the mansion. Karl was in a different room and Batman had to slow down the batarang and steer it upstairs until it eventually found him. The purpose wasn't to hit him but just to make him panic and run. The batarang flew right in front of his face and cut right into a shelf in the room.

"Now Robin," I said a little too excited.

Robin started chasing Karl and purposely made a lot of noise and tried to direct him outside the house. However, Karl stood his ground inside the house with his gun.

"Hey, I tried to get him out in the open but he is holding the fort in his living room," Robin said.

"Okay, guys do your dynamic duo thing," I said.

Batman drove the Batmobile toward the house. He quickly used the remote hacker, to unlock the pin to the entrance gate and run inside. It got quiet for a moment but then I heard Batman speak over the radio.

"D2," Batman said.

From what Robin told me afterward it stood for their code for distract and disarm. Depending on the situation they usually can read which person is doing which role. Right then, Robin poked his head and as Karl started shooting in his direction Batman snuck up behind Karl and subdued him. Afterwards, they took Karl back to the holding cell they had in a secluded area of the Batcave. We still couldn't prove a real crime on him yet, so we couldn't turn him over to the police. However, we avoided triggering any alarms so we were able to spend the next few days digging up all we could on him. In the end, we came up with over 30 companies he stole money from and a list of tons of organizations that he provided his services for. Much of it was cryptic and hard for me to crack but it was valuable experience for me that taught me many things not included in Charles guide.

Two weeks after holding him in the cave, I presented evidence of other crimes he was involved in to Renee Montoya. After his initial sentencing, it seemed every week I would come back to her with more crimes he did to add to his time in Blackgate prison.

I didn't necessarily expect anything more than a 'thank you' after the case but was in for a pleasant surprise when Batman left a message for me to meet with him. He picked me up in the Batwing and we flew on top of Wayne Tower which was one of the tallest points in the city.

"So Barbara, do you want to become an official part of the team?" Batman asked.

"Really, you would let me?" I asked.

"You have one of the most brilliant minds I have ever come across and have been incredibly helpful to us in your current role. I'll admit, when you first put on that costume, I wanted to distance myself from you as much as possible. But now that I see how dedicated you have been to this cause, I think you belong with us."

"Of course I'll join. I idolize you guys. What do I have to do?"

"Well, continue to finish school at GU but I want you to leave your library job on campus and come work for Lucious Fox at Waynetech Enterprises"

"Waynetech? Is that why you brought me here? So how are you connected to Waynetech?"

Batman took off his mask and revealed himself and playboy billionaire Bruce Wayne.

"Oh my god…. it's you. That's crazy…"

I took the job at Waynetech working under Lucious splitting my work between the computer security division and Lucious research that led to the development of Batman's gadgets.

The more difficult learning came in the cave learning the stealth, ninjutsu, martial arts, and gadget mastery. Batman's training was rigorous and I certainly wasn't the athletic physical specimen he and his sidekick were. I had always taken self-defense classes so I did better in that area but Batman really wanted me to be a full package vigilante like they were and it was a struggle. At times, I started to question if I really wanted to be the vigilante he wanted and didn't totally understand it at first. However, the longer I was around them the more I realized that the dynamic duo clashed quite a bit. Although I didn't think it would happen anytime soon, I did wonder if he was grooming me to be a replacement for him.

During this time I became a crazy multi-tasker as I was trying to maintain being ahead of my classes in college, diving deeper into the hacker community, and learning how to be a field operative as Batgirl.


End file.
